Kevin Rudd on UN 2030: Rebuilding Order in a Fragmenting World

Asia Society Policy Institute President Kevin Rudd is releasing a report on Tuesday, August 30, on the “UN 2030: Rebuilding Order in a Fragmenting World.” This report, complete with recommendations for the next UN Secretary General, was written in Rudd’s capacity as Chair of The Independent Commission on Multilateralism (ICM). The report concludes a two-year review of the United Nations system in 16 areas, ranging from counter-terrorism to administrative reform, and was carried out under the auspices of the International Peace Institute. 

Rudd’s core argument in his ICM Chair’s report is that the UN matters — and if it fails, falters, or fades away it would fundamentally erode the stability of an already fragile global order. But at the same time, he argues, we tend to take the UN for granted, overlooking the reality that its continued existence is not inevitable. The UN, while not yet broken, is in trouble. The report concludes, however, that the UN is capable of reinventing itself. This requires not one-off reforms but a continual process of reinvention to ensure the institution is responding to the policy challenges of our time.

Rudd's report complements and echoes themes of the work he leads at ASPI — specifically on the rise of Asia and its impact on the global order.

His report also details his suggestions on a range of principles for UN reform and outlines a series of recommendations for the future in peace and security, sustainable development, humanitarian engagement, and management.

The report launch event will take place at the International Peace Institute in New York, and will be moderated by its President, Ambassador Terje Rød-Larsen.